Sharks Swim Past Jersey Shore In Time For Thanksgiving

JERSEY SHORE, NJ — Humans aren't the only ones who are traveling for Thanksgiving. Research group OCEARCH's shark tracker shows some activity off the coast of New Jersey, as sharks make their way down south for the winter.

Anne Bonny, a white shark named for the famous pirate, "pinged" multiple times on Nov. 19 according to the tracker, as she swam across the Hudson Canyon. This submarine canyon rivals the Grand Canyon in depth and size and is an important spot for a variety of sensitive and protected species.

A shark "pings" when it breaks surface of the water and sends data to OCEARCH about its location.

And this 425-pound, 9-foot 3-inch shark is not the only one making her way by the Jersey Shore. Simon, a white shark who emerged off the Barnegat Peninsula as he swam north this past spring, was spotted early in the morning of Nov. 22 making his way south from Nantucket Shoals.

Other sharks, like the 578-pound Keji, traveled down earlier in the month. And others did not get close to New Jersey at all.

OCEARCH tracks these sharks in order to find out more about when and where they mate. White sharks spend their winters in the warmer waters in the Outer Banks, North Carolina area before they head back north during the spring.

According to OCEARCH, this Western North Atlantic White Shark Study is the most comprehensive study of white sharks in the world.